The University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons guard Ricci Rivero dedicated every basket he made to the jeepney drivers, who ply the UP-Ikot route in Diliman, Quezon City.
The plight UP Ikot Drivers Association drivers, who were affected by the lockdown brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, were on his mind when he made the two winning charities that allowed the Fighting Maroons to upset the defending champion Ateneo Blue Eagles, 84-83, last Sunday in the 84th University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball tournament.
And it is also their situation that continues to inspire the 23-year-old Rivero going into their Final Four showdown with the La Salle Green Archers.
“That wasn’t really all me, it was really God. I was praying na kung ano man magiging decision namin sa kung ano mangyayari might be dun sa timeout or dun sa during the game, Gamitin niya lang kami as instruments for that, so it was God it wasn’t me,” said Rivero before their encounter with the Green Archers.
Rivero’s project is known as Ricci Rivero’s Buckets of Hope.
Money raised has reached P139,800 and it will benefit the jeepney drivers, whose livelihood was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The UP Ikot route has been shut down since 2020 by UP-Diliman campus authorities because of the pandemic and after several areas around the campus were converted to quarantine facilities.
With P600 earned for every shot in the 14 games he made, Rivero finished the elimination round with 183 points for an average of 13.07 points.
Rivero, according to friends, pledged P250 for every point scored, and so did his handlers at Virtual Playground.
UP College of Human Kinetics Dean Francis Diaz vowed to add P50 more while businesswomen Debbie Tolentino added another P50. Then, there’s P30,000 from Sagittarian Food Industries in Santiago, Isabela.
An inspired Rivero said this has motivated him to work on his consistency in every game he plays for the Maroons.
“We really have to be consistent the whole game diba, so we can’t really lose yung consistency naming. If ever man na mawala siya for awhile kailangan, kailangan mabawi namin siya,” Rivero added.
